The present invention relates generally to energy consumption.
The demand for energy resources often varies during the course of a day. By way of example, the demand for energy is often lower during the night and higher during the day. At times, the demand for energy may peak such that an energy supplier must resort to peak consumption shaving techniques that may inconvenience customers. When the demand for energy peaks, the energy supplier may request that customers or end-users turn off appliances, or the energy supplier may limit the amount of energy that the customers may use when demand for energy is high.
If customers are unable to use energy when they demand it, customers are often dissatisfied. For example, on a particularly hot day, customers may wish to utilize their air conditioners in order to maintain a comfortable temperature in their environments. If the demand for energy is peaked such that many customers are unable to use their air conditioners, those customers are likely to be extremely dissatisfied. Although the temperature in their environments may remain within a desired range for some time after customers are unable to use their air conditioners, the temperature will often exceed the desired range at some point. The closer the temperature is to the upper threshold of the desired range when the customer is unable to use energy, the more likely the temperature is to eventually exceed the upper threshold.